


The Harbour Is Poisoned

by FMLClexa



Category: Runaways (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Greek Mythology, Angst, Camp Half-Blood (Percy Jackson), F/F, F/M, No really it's angst galore, Road Trips, get ready its gonna hurt, no lesbians were harmed in the making of this fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-16
Updated: 2019-05-16
Packaged: 2019-10-11 02:46:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,983
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17438441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FMLClexa/pseuds/FMLClexa
Summary: Karolina's life is flipped on its head the day Chase Stein breaks into her church and cuts a goat-robot-lady in two to defend her and claims to be the son of a God.ORa deanoru half blood au because for the love of god we need more deanoru content.





	1. PROLOGUE

**MARCH 19TH 1999**

 

It was cold the day he introduced Leslie to Zeus. Despite the cold, the Empire State Building was busy with tourists. 

“I just…” She trailed off looking at him with uncertainty, “I don’t understand why it needs to be him. Wouldn’t your child be powerful as well?” He smiled patiently, as though he were explaining this to a child and not his wife. 

“They would be powerful- to a degree. But it wouldn’t be enough. The more the blood of the Gods is diluted, the weaker the descendant is.” He shook his head, “No, this is the only solution.  _ You _ are the only solution, love.” She smiled at that, his carefully chosen words slipping through her defences. 

“Okay, so I just go up to him?” The uncertainty in her face was still clear. He put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. 

“Just go, say hello, flirt. He may be powerful but he is blind to a pretty face. He will fall for you quick, just as I did.” His final words seemed to reassure her and she nodded, taking a breath and steeling herself. 

With a final look at him, she turned away from the overlook and began walking across the roof towards the tall man he recognized from long ago.  _ Zeus _ .

He watched for several moments as Leslie made her way over to him. He watched as she “stumbled” into him and apologized, touching his arm as she spoke. He curled his lip at the look in his father’s eye. 

As Zeus responded, a clear interest apparent on his face, he wondered briefly the number of times Zeus had broken his own rule of mating with mortals since he made it. 

With a final glare in the old God’s direction, he made his way to the elevator. 

  
__________  


 

He made his way up to where Menoetius sat, an excited energy in his body. Despite his disdain for Zeus, he was an instrumental part in the plan and seeing Leslie talk to him made it feel real. Millenia of planning and it was all coming together. 

The Titan looked up as he approached. 

“Jonah,” His eyes were cold as they nodded their greeting, “I assume it went well?” 

Jonah nodded, hands resting in his pockets, “Yes, from what I could tell. He seemed smitten.” He said the words with disdain. For all that they could disagree on their method, their shared hatred of Zeus kept them working together. For the thousands of years since they met. 

“I still don’t understand your need for this plan Jonah. We have  _ Gods _ on our side, why do we need another demigod?” He sighed as Menoetius brought the tired argument up again. 

“Two children of Zeus, working together with a Titan and Gods. It is what is required,” His tone was firm, “I’ve spent years growing my powers and with what I could teach another child of Zeus…” He trailed off, “That plus the secret to my immortality- together we would be unstoppable. A new generation of Gods.” He couldn’t help the proud quirk in his lip at the thought.

Menoetius stood at that, the anger in him growing quickly as it always did, “This future of yours seems to consist of you and this child,” He moved forwards, crowding into Jonah’s space, “You speak of sharing this immortality, just don’t forget who helped you achieve it.” 

Jonah felt his own temper flare in him, taking a step towards Menoetius in response.

“Menoetius you would do well to remember who shielded you from the God’s wrath when you escaped Tartarus,” He jabbed his finger into the Titan’s chest, making the other man’s eyes spark with anger, “Remember who brought you back from the brink of death and built your power. It was me who swayed the Twins and the dreamer to our side. It was me who built us a fortune of power and wealth in the mortal world. That was all  _ me _ .” He was snarling at the end, jabbing his finger hard into his chest again, “You need  _ me,  _ do not try and make it seem any other way.” With that he stepped back, exhaling forcefully through his nose and straightening his suit. 

The Titan’s fists were clenched at his sides, eyes literally glowing with his rage. 

“Of course,” He said through gritted teeth, “Apologies. Send for me whenever there is an update.” With that, he spun on his heel and stalked off in the opposite direction. Jonah watched him go, following the path of the park until he was cut off by trees. 

He inhaled the cold spring air and turned to leave in the opposite direction. 

As he walked he looked into the sky and watched as storm clouds rolled in. 


	2. CHAPTER 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> now this is a story all about how my life got flipped turned upside down

You may not be interested in war, but war is interested in you.

-Leon Trotsky

 

 

 

 

_Karolina didn’t remember getting to where she was now._

_Her surroundings were vaguely familiar. Some national park in the West.  Colourful hot springs were scattered around her at random intervals as she walked. Some were large, the water in them nearly boiling. Others were smaller with a small mist forming on top._

_All of them were beautiful, inviting._

_Had she not been so determined to keep walking she would have stopped, dipped her toe in- tested the temperature._

_But she was determined._

_There was something warm and soft drawing her forward. An unnameable infinitely powerful force urging her to keep moving. To reach the destination in front of her._

_She didn’t know what it was, she would simply know when she reached it._

_And then she did._

_She stopped in front of one of the larger springs. The water was bubbling, creating a rolling fog over the entire thing._

_She looked up from the spring and saw him._

_Standing in the water- or rather, floating directly above it, his toes barely grazing the surface- was a man in a toga._

_But he was more than that._

_The wings on his back made that much clear to her, even in the hazy state the fog had put her mind in. He raised an arm, curling his fingers towards him to beckon her forwards._

_She was helpless to resist._

_She began forward, her feet moving on their own accord. But the force moving her was no longer warm. It felt like her entire body had been dipped in ice water. A sense of foreboding settled in her chest._

_She just needed to get warm. She just needed to step forward. One more step and she would be in the water. It looked so warm- so inviting compared to the terrible dread she felt in her chest._

_Then she took that final step, her bare foot moving slowly as though she were moving in molasses towards the spring._

_Her toe touched the spring and-_

 

 

Her eyes flew open, her heart hammering in her chest as she lay staring at the ceiling. She drew in a ragged breath and turned to grab her phone from her dresser.

**6:58**

A sigh left her lips. She wasn’t going to be able to sleep again after that dream.

Her heart was still hammering when she sat up, swinging her legs over the side of her bed. It had been an utterly bizarre dream. Who was the dude with the wings? Why was he wearing a toga of all things?

She shook the thoughts from her head as she stood. Peeling her sleep shirt off and letting the grim feeling in her stomach be taken with it. She had church matters to attend to. Her mom told her last night that there were three new runaways that had shown up.

She was older now and it was her responsibility to climatize the young runaways.

Her dad always said it was because she could relate to them the best because of her age. Lately, though, she was beginning to think it was more because her mom didn’t want to handle that part of the church.

She reprimanded herself mentally. That wasn’t a fair thought. That was her own bitter feelings towards a mom who expected everything from her trying to justify themselves.

She grabbed her phone as she left her room slipping it into her pocket and leaving her room. She let her thoughts drift as she walked through her house and into the kitchen. Her mind kept drifting back to that dream. The springs, the floating man, the urge- no, need, to feel the water.

She grabbed a piece of bread and shoved it into the toasted, mindlessly pouring herself a glass of orange juice and grabbing the jam from the fridge.

Leslie walked in, already dressed looking at her phone as she moved through the kitchen.

Karolina watched her navigate the room for a few moments before speaking.

“Goodmorning,”

The older woman looked up at that, plastering a smile on her face.

“Karolina dear, great I was just looking for you. The three new runaways are waiting in the lounge for you to give them a tour of the church and show them to their rooms.” Karolina scraped the jam onto the toast as her mom spoke to her, nodding at the words, “Excellent- oh before I forget, your father needs your help with a sermon tonight. 8 o’clock, don’t be late.” With that, the older woman leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead before quickly leaving the room.

Karolina opened her mouth to respond but found there was no need. She had already left the room.

She tried not to let the interaction dampen her mood as she ate the toast quickly and finished the juice.

It wasn’t long before she was walking into the lounge to see the three new runaways.

She stopped in the door, taking in the people before her. There were two girls, probably a year older than her talking with their heads close. Their voices were hushed and Karolina couldn’t hear a word of it. Her gaze drifted to the other person in the room. A blonde boy sitting alone in the corner with a hiking backpack lying at his feet.

She closed the door behind her, announcing her presence and then all the eyes in the room were on her.

“Hey guys, I’m Karolina. If you know what the church is you probably know who I am but don’t worry about that. I’m gonna show your guys around the complex, then to your rooms and after that, you’ll be able to get something warm to eat.” She gave her best smile with the speech. All of them continued to stare at her, not saying anything. She tried to maintain her smile but it was a feeling she was never quite comfortable with, even when there were only three people in the room. Her smile became strained as she stood in silence, “So yeah!” She attempted to break the silence awkwardly. That was what it took for the girls to stand up and move forward to greet her.

The first one put on a smile Karolina could only describe as flirtatious as she looked at Karolina, “I’m Katie,” The second girl quickly moved forwards next to her friend with an equally flirty smile.

“Jenn,”  
  
Karolina gaped at them for a moment before closing her mouth and nodding. Her words failed her for a moment before she nodded and put the biggest smile she could on her face.

“Great! Those are great- names,” She ended, cringing to herself as she finished the sentence.

The girls didn’t seem to find anything odd with it though so she took it in stride, moving past it and mentally vowing never to think of it again.

The boy had moved up right next to them, his bag now slung over one shoulder. They two girls almost looked like they flinched away from him, shifting their bodies so that they were further away.

He stuck his hand out for her and she took it, glad that she wasn’t going to make a fool of herself infront of at least one of them.

“My names Chase,” He said, an easy smile on his face.

She smiled and shook his hand, letting it drop after a moment.

“Nice to meet you,” She stepped back motioning for them to follow her, “You guys can follow me through here.”  


__________

 

Karolina walked through the mostly empty halls of the church, her step lighter than it had been in the morning. She’d just dropped Chase off in his new room, right after the two girls were given their rooms. It was a good day. They seemed ready to settle in nicely.

She stopped outside the rec room and peeked inside.

_Empty._

That was unusual.

She stepped inside, looking around for anybody hanging around.

There were always people in the rec room during the day.

She turned to move out the door again and was surprised to see Katie and Jenn standing in the doorway, blocking her path.

She furrowed her brow in surprised for a moment before smiling, “Hey, you guys checking out the rec room?”

Katie moved forwards, an almost sultry grace in her walk, “We were thinking we’d check something else out,” Jenn began moving as well, walking up and behind Karolina, trailing a finger over her shoulders.

Karolina let out a choked noise.

“Um guys-” She began, nerves creeping into her voice.

“Relax,” Jenn whispered into her ear.

Instantly all the muscles in her body loosened and a sense of ease came over her.

“Good,” Katie purred, a smirk on her lips that made Karolina’s addled mind roam, “Will you come with us?” She questioned, though it was more of a statement than an actual question.

Jenn finally moved from behind her to stand beside Katie as Karolina tried to remember how to speak.

“I- Yes?” She sounded unsure of her words. No, she _was_ unsure of her words. What was coming over her?

“You want to come with us,” Katie said. Karolina couldn’t agree more. Why would she want to be anywhere that these two weren’t?

“Of course-” Her words were cut off as Katie’s torso separated in two and her body turned to dust. Chase stood behind where her body was moments ago, a thick sword in his right hand.

Karolina let out a shriek and stumbled back, the relaxation from moments before gone. Replaced by an all-encompassing fear. Chase sent a strong kick to the other girl’s chest that sent her sprawling onto the floor hard.

He grabbed her wrist and began running, giving her no choice but to follow along behind her. The second they entered the next room she shoved him off her, the fear in her body finally outweighed by logic.

“What the fuck is wrong with you!” She felt panic growing in her as she looked around the room for something to defend herself with all while backing up at the same time.

“No- Karolina you saw how she turned to dust that wasn’t a human,”

“All I saw was you literally cutting a girl in two with a literal sword!” She grabbed a vase from a table beside her and hoisted it up beside her head.

He gave her an exasperated look. It clearly conveyed ‘I have a sword what the hell are you going to do with that vase’.

She went to respond but the door they entered through burst open revealing a much angrier looking Jenn.

Her eyes were _literally_ on fire and her pants seemed to have disappeared.

Thankfully -or not?- she didn’t seem to have human legs. One leg looked like a goat’s and another was made of brass.

“Believe me now?” Chase snapped, grabbing her arm and taking off running. Karolina dropped the vase as she ran, her heart pounding a million miles a minute. She court hear the uneven _clop, thunk, clop, thunk, clop, thunk_ behind her.

“GET BACK HERE DEMIGODS!”

Karolina couldn’t help the exasperated, “What the fuck is she talking about?” That she shouted as they ran.

And like most questions Karolina asked, she got no answer.

They burst out the front door of the church and Chase kept running.

He seemed to know what he was doing with the whole demon people situation so she followed. A block down the road he got to a beat up looking truck and climbed in the front seat.

“Get in!” He shouted, waving for her to get in the passenger seat.

“I-” She looked down the road towards where Jenn was hammering down the street towards them.

20 yards.

15 yards.

10 yards.

Fuck it.

She yanked the door open and climbed in. The second the door closed Chase slammed his foot on the gas. They swerved into the -thankfully- empty road and kept the fast speed as they swerved between cars.

“What the fuck!” She shouted after a minute of silence. Chase glanced over at her, worrying his lip.

“Are you okay?”

“What do you mean am I okay? Some weird goat-robot-human hybrid women just tried to seduce me, you cut one of them in half and then the other one chased me out of the church and now-” She stopped her ranting to inhale sharply, and stammer on her words for a few moments, “Now I’m in a car with a guy I met _literally_ this morning driving away from my mom and dad and everybody I know-” She stopped abruptly again as a thought occurred to her, “What if she goes back? My family is there! Fuck,” She pulled her phone out and began dialling her mom's number. Seconds later her phone was snatched from her hands and tossed out Chase’s window.

She was silent for a moment as Chase stared at the road, a nervous expression on his face as he drove.

“I cannot stress this enough, but what the fuck, dude,” She said, her voice half horrified half confused.

“Monsters can’t harm mortals so your parents and all of them will be fine. They can, on the other hand, hurt us and using a cellphone is like lighting a mile high beacon.” He explained, looking at her every few moments.

She was silent for a moment, processing the information.

“So instead of telling me to not call anyone, you chuck my phone out the window? Do you understand how creepy that is, dude? I don’t know you! I’m in your car driving who knows where and you just threw my only communication device away,” She glared at him as a sheepish expression overtook his face.

“I… didn’t think of that,” He admitted, at least having the grace to look bad.

“Of course you didn’t,” She grumbled, crossing her arms and trying to ignore the way it only amplified how hard she could feel her heart beating.

There was silence for a few moments before Karolina spoke again.

“Where are we going? And what did you mean when you referred to my family as Mortals but not me- us,”

“We’re going to Camp Half-Blood. It’s a place in Long Island where people like us can live in peace without worrying about monster attacks daily.”

“You didn’t answer my second questions, what do you mean people like us?” Her chest was tight with fear. This wasn’t how her Sunday was supposed to go.

“We aren’t mortals. We may die and get hurt and age just like them but we’re… well, we’re special. Half of us in human but the other half is God.”

“So you’re saying one of my parents was a God?”

“Bingo.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the empousai's charmspeak would work in karolina because she is a lesbian and she loves girls and if you think otherwise u can feel free to argue your wrong pov in the comments
> 
> but really i required reviews to live it is my sustenance


	3. CHAPTER 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> in true me fashion, i've shown up several months late with a chapter that I haven't beta read
> 
> that being said, i'm already working on the next chapters so maybe this time i can get a few out before going awol again

They’d been driving for nearly an hour and a half when Chase finally pulled over. He parked the truck on the side of the road and shut off the engine, shoving his keys into his pocket and hopping out of the car. Karolina shook her head and followed him, watches as he walked a few feet ahead of her deeper into the forest.

“Is this where you axe murder me?” She mused, half to herself half to him. He turned back and gave her a partial grin.

“I have a sword remember?” She stopped for a second, making him pause as well.

“If I’m scared of being axe murdered why would you bring that up?” She asked exasperatedly. He had the decency to look guilty at the and muttered out a weak “sorry”. She just shook her head and kept walking.

She didn’t know what to think at this point. She didn’t know if she could trust him, she had no clue where he was taking her. He could just be some delusional guy who lied to young girls and took them out to the forest to kill them. Of course, he had some credibility on account of the whole goat robot lady. That still didn’t make sense to her. 

As the overwhelming silence was slowly winding her up she decided to talk.

“So if we’re half-bloods, and we all have one Godly parent…” She paused looking for the right words to ask the question.

“Who’s mine?” He said, finishing her sentence for her. She nodded, not trusting herself to speak without hysterics coming out of her mouth instead of sensible words. He slowed his pace slightly so they could walk in step as they talked, “My dad’s Hephaestus.” When she gave him a blank look he continued, “He’s the god of fire and craft.” 

Karolina nodded, before turning to look at him again, “So what does that mean? Can you like make fire? Or make stuff out of thin air or something?” 

Chase let out an easy laugh, shaking his head.

“Nah, I mean some children of Hephaestus throughout history have been known to be able to touch fire without being burnt or even make fire like you said. But I’ve just always been really good at making things. I’m the head of my cabin and I make a lot of the weapons and armour for the campers,” She nodded, not quite able to wrap her head around how it worked, “Oh and when I touch machinery I just kinda… I understand how it works? If that makes sense,” 

She nodded, “Yeah totally I-” She paused and sighed, “No not really bit not much of this makes sense to me so…” She rubbed the back of her neck and let out an awkward laugh. 

He gave her an understanding look, “Trust me when I got here I was just as confused as you are now. Probably more than you are honestly,” She gave him a strained smile and nodded, “Give it some time, you’ll adjust. We all do. Come on, we’re almost there,” He said with a grunt as they started up an incline.

She sighed, ignoring the burn in her legs as they made their way up the hill. Her mind was racing. How the hell had her day started as normally as it had and turned into this.

Into being seduced by hybrid monsters.

Into being  _ chased _ by those hybrid monsters.

Into driving an hour and a half away from the only home she’d ever known into the woods with some random guy she’d never met. 

She bit her lip, trying to keep her quickly spiralling emotions in check. What the hell was going to happen next? What about her family.

Her family. Which one of her parents wasn’t really her’s? It had to be her mom, it’d explain why their relationship was always so strained. Did they even know? What would they do when they realized she was gone? How was she supposed to-

“Karolina?” Her head shot up from the ground and she looked to Chase instead. He stopped and put his hand on her shoulder, “You okay?” The concern was evident in his eyes.

She took a shaky breath in, realizing just how fast her heart was beating. 

“Yeah-” She nodded, doing her best to smile, “Yeah- no, sorry. I’m good.” 

With a look that was only somewhat pitying Chase nodded and used his hand on her shoulder to turn her back in the direction, they had been walking in and nodded to the top of the hill.

She took a few more steps up and her mouth hung open for a few moments, “There it is.” He said, his voice full of pride as he spread his arms wide.

She looked at the valley below them and took in everything she could see. 

It was a sight that she wouldn’t easily forget. 

To the far left strawberry fields grew out of control her gaze followed the horizon to the right, skating over a forest and resting on the glistening Long Island Sound. There was what appeared to be an amphitheatre and she could see people hacking at each other with swords -which was only slightly alarming- in the distance.

“That there,” Chase pointed in front of them, “That’s the Big House. That’s where Chiron is. He wants to meet you,”

Karolina’s brow furrowed, “Chiron? As in the mythical centaur from thousands of years ago who trained like- Jason? And Achilles and all them?” 

He grinned and started walking down the hill leaving her to catch up.

“The one and only.”

 

__________

  
  


She’d been sitting in the Big House for about 10 minutes. Chase’d walked her down from the hill and all the way there and told her to way, saying he was going to find Chiron and bring him to her.

So there she was, in what she assumed was Chiron’s office staring at a wall because despite this strange new world she found herself in with all its infinite possibilities, she literally had no clue what else to do. 

She heard voices through the open doorway of the Office and turned, looking expectantly at the door as they got louder. After a few moments, Chase and a centaur who she assumed had to be Chiron came into view and walked into the office. 

“Karolina,” Chiron gave her a patronly smile as he walked to his desk, his hooves clopping and dragging across the hardwood floor in a way that was only relatively distracting to Karolina. On account of the whole never having seen a human have to clop their way around any room on hooves. 

She looked up after a moment, meeting his look with a nervous smile of her own and nodded.

“Chiron, right?” He hummed in response, nodding and moving to stand behind his desk. Chase settled against the wall, crossing his arms and waiting in silence. 

“You must have a lot of questions,” He said, his voice steady. She laughed but it came out as more of a scoff.

“You could say that yeah,” When she looked at him he raised his brow and tilted his head, signalling her to ask them, “Right I… my biggest question is, well- which of my parents is a God I guess?”

He gave her a sympathetic look, “Unfortunately I don’t have the answer to that particular question. If you’re lucky it’s a minor god. That would make the most sense because you’re what- 17?” She nodded, “It is  _ extremely _ rare for demigods to make it past ages 11 or 12 without their first monster attack. Chase told me today was the first experience you’ve ever had with a monster. Now what I believe has happened is one of your parents or even one of their parents was a demigod. It’s rare but it happens and it would explain why no monsters had tracked you until now.” 

Karolina nodded, trying to wrap her head around the idea, “So you’re saying I’m like… a quarter-god?”

Chiron chuckled softly, “Something like that, even at that you’d most likely be the descendant of a minor god if they managed to stay under the radar long enough to have kids.” 

Karolina nodded, “So if one of my parents was a demigod and they aren’t here, does that mean I can go?” 

Chiron drew his lips together and shook his head, “All in due time,” 

Karolina furrowed her brow and glanced to Chase who just sighed and shook his head slightly. 

Chiron turned to Chase after that, “Chase would you mind orienting Karolina and showing her to the Hermes cabin before dinner?” He asked, though it was more of a gentle command than anything. 

Chase nodded and Karolina stood, walking with him out the door when he moved to leave. 

As they walked off the front porch and past a group of young teenagers sitting together on the front lawn laughing Karolina finally spoke.

“So… That was kinda vague,” She muttered drawing a laugh from Chase. He nodded and shrugged.

“Chiron can be like that sometimes, he means well. You’ll get all your answers eventually. I can promise you that.” She gave him a skeptical look but didn’t say anymore. 

He turned so that he was walking backwards and pointed far behind her, “That over there’s the amphitheatre, we go there after dinner most nights and sing camp songs and stuff. It’s pretty cool.” He flipped back so they were walking in the same direction and pointed off to her left, “Over there’s the forge, I spend most of my free time there but it can get pretty hot,” He trailed off for a moment nodding at two campers who walked by them, “Just next to it is the armoury, we’ll head there at some point and get you fitted for some equipment,”

She gave him a concerned look, “As in sword equipment?”

He grinned, “The one and only,” He didn’t linger on that worrying information for long, however, continuing on with his tour as they walked, “Just over there are the woods, the capture the flag games we have in there are legendary.” 

“I’ll have to take your word for it…” She muttered, looking around her before stopping in her tracks, “Does that climbing wall have lava on it?” She muttered incredulously.

“Yeah, isn’t it sick?” He had the look of an excited puppy and she couldn’t quite bring herself to tell him how “sick” she found it.

As they kept walking they came upon a large building with a colosseum vibe to it.   
  
“This here’s the arena, where lots of our practice happens,” He started up the steps to the entrance and she lingered at the bottom until he stopped and waved her over, “Come on there’s some people I want you to meet.” 

She sighed and shook her head but started up the stairs nonetheless, walking towards what was obviously her inevitable doom by a stray arrow or sword.

As they walked in, Karolina a healthy distance behind Chase as to avoid being hacked to bits by the practising swordsmen he walked dangerously close to. 

They stopped in front of two girls who were going at each other violently. 

Chase had a grin on his face, “Watch this, these two are some of the best fighters here.”

The taller of the two had a shield and spear danced on light feet, hopping back and forth and jabbing occasionally with her spear, deflecting the other girl’s sword blows with her shield.

Karolina couldn’t quite see their expression’s, the spartan style helmets covering their faces left pretty much everything to the imagination but by the fearsome shouts and the sheen of sweat on their skin she could tell they weren’t going easy.

The spear girl went for a lunge and some part of Karolina knew she’d gone too far, knew her foot had extended just past its mark. The shorter girl moved into her space, grabbing the shield with her free hand and yanking it away as she brought her sword up just below the other girl’s chin. The sharp point rested just below the soft skin of her under-chin.

After a moment they both stepped away and pulled their helmets off, grins on their lips despite their clear exhaustion. Karolina watched as they sheathed their weapons and began speaking to each other in voices to low for her to hear over the din of metal clashing against metal.

Chase started walking towards them, spreading his arms.

“My favourite tacticians!” The two girls turned to look at them as they walked and the shorter of the two rolled her eyes.

“Don’t let Alex hear you say that,” She said through a smirk, pushing her hair out of her face.

“He’s on a quest Gert!” He said, a flirtatious glint in his eye that was no doubt noticeable to anybody within a 5-mile radius, “What he doesn’t know can’t hurt him.” 

The other girl rolled her eyes next, “Please,” She groaned, “Please flirt anywhere but around me, that’s all I ask,”

The two in question both turned red stammering a few nonsensical lines before Gert turned to Karolina.

“Anyways,” She said pointedly, glaring at the other girl who crossed her arms and smirked, “Who’s this, Chase?”

Chase regained his composure after another moment of spluttering and nodded, “Right yeah. This is Karolina,” He gestured to her, “Karolina, meet these two.”

Gert snorted, “Elegant as always, Chase,” She extended her hand to Karolina, “Gert Yorkes, daughter of Athena,”

Karolina took her hand, more surprised than she should’ve been by the strong, calloused grip the other girl offered. When she pulled away the other girl extended her hand.

“Molly Hernandes, daughter of Ares. What you just saw,” She pointed between herself and Gert, “Doesn’t normally go like that,”

Karolina let out a laugh, “No?”

Molly smiled smugly, an underlying layer of jesting under her voice, “Nah normally I would’ve beat Gert before you walked in.”

Gert laughed, throwing her head back, “As if! Face it, Molls, you’re good but you can’t out think a child of Athena in battle.”

Molly shook her head exasperatedly, “I’ve told you this a thousand times! If you’re relying 100% on thinking in a real fight- you’ll lose every time.” 

Just as Gert went to rebuttal Chase tapped Karolina’s arm and gestured for her to follow him as he started walking.

She turned with him, walking back towards where they entered from.

“As much as I’d love to see that argument play out for hundredth time this month, I gotta show you to your cabin before dinner and the sun’s getting lower and lower.”

Karolina nodded as he brought her back onto the path, “Is it normal that they argue like that?”

Chase chuckled, “Yes and no. They’re siblings- Or, they might as well be. Gert’s parents adopted Molly when she was younger.” Karolina nodded.

She didn’t exactly understand, she had no siblings of her own to compare the situation too but there’d been several runaways that were siblings. She’d seen how many of them refused to be separated despite their constant bickering. 

That was family. 

They walked in silence along the path, the lake shimmering to their left and a sort of horseshoe of large houses up ahead.

“These are the cabins. It’s where we stay when we’re at the camp,” He explained, “Each of the 12 gods has their own cabin and their children stay in their respective cabins.”

“Well, I don’t know who my parent is, which cabin do I stay in?”

Chase rubbed the back of his neck at that, an uncomfortable expression on his face, “Well a lot of the gods don’t actually claim their kids? And all the minor gods don’t have their own cabin so the unclaimed and those who aren’t one of the big 12 all just stay in the Hermes cabin.” 

Karolina frowned at that, “Wouldn’t that be a bit crowded?”

He nodded, “Yeah, crowded is one word for it. Hectic’s another. It can be- well you’ll see in a moment.” 

He turned off the path to the leftmost cabin and led her forwards. She watched as someone  _ literally _ fell out of a window backwards on the right side of the building and the front door slam open, two boys wrestling with each as they tumbled out and couldn’t help but feel like she was walking to the gallows.

As they got closer a tall boy with a shaved head stalked out the door that’d been slammed open.

“Carlos! Derek! Enough!” He grabbed one of the boys and hauled him off the other, pushing him back when he tried to advance again, “Go cool off,” The other boy made to take another step forwards around him but was met with a solid hand on his chest, “ _ Now.” _

Karolina watched as the boy stormed off and the tall boy turned to the other guy who’d been in the scuffled, “Stop antagonizing him, you’re better than that.”   
  
He looked down, a guilty look on his face as he walked back into the cabin.

Karolina and Chase came to a stop in front of the building and the mediator turned to face them.

He put a smile on despite the tired set of his shoulders, “Chase, how can I help you?”

Chase gave him an apologetic look, “I’ve got a new recruit for you. This is Karolina.”

The other boy looked at Karolina for a moment, appraising her in a way that for once didn’t feel creepy, “Karolina, welcome to our house. I’m Topher.”

“Nice to meet you,” She looked behind him for a moment, “It looks like a nice house,” She offered.

He laughed, a full belied genuine thing that made her a bit more comfortable, “Nah it’s a fucking mess but you’ll get used to it. If you stay with us long enough, you’ll learn to love it.” 

She laughed too, his honest words refreshing. 

He turned to look at Chase, “You can head out Chase, I’ve got her from here.” 

Chase nodded and turned to Karolina, “You come to find me after dinner, ya hear?” He said, already turning on his heel and walking backwards away from them.

She nodded, smiling at him as he gave them a two-fingered salute and left. 

Topher turned to her again, “You got any things you need to bring in with you?”

She shook her head and he nodded, “Alright well let me show you to your bed then.” 

He led her inside, through slightly cramped hallways and up to the second floor. There he brought her in a large room with about a dozen bunk beds set up.

“There are three empty bunks in the back corner there, all the girls in here are nice but if you have any problems you come talk to me, alright?” She nodded, smiling at the kind words.

“Yeah, thanks Topher, seriously,” She appreciated the kindnesses she was being shown especially with all the confusion.

He just smiled and patted her shoulder, “Whatever you need, I know how hard it can be to adjust,” He looked down at his watch and swore, “Dinners starting up, we should probably go now.”

She sighed tiredly and shrugged, “Lead the way.”

 

__________

  
  


She sat quietly at the Hermes table. Despite the fact that she had an excellent meal on her plate, reminiscent the barbecues her dad always had yet she couldn’t quite bring herself to eat.

It felt fake she sat here surrounded by strangers who joked and laughed as if nothing was wrong but everything was wrong. She’d seen a girl-  _ monster _ cut in two in the church’s rec room this morning. She’d seen a horse-man. She’d seen two girls full out attacking each other with metal weapons and then shrug it off like it was nothing.

That wasn’t stuff that just happened. 

You don’t just start your day normally and then end up in some hidden god-camp hours away from the only home you’ve ever known-

“Hey, you alright?” Topher was standing behind her, his hand on her shoulder.

She gave him a tight smile, “Yeah, just not that hungry.”

He gave her a knowing smile, “I understand, we’re heading to the amphitheatre now. You should bring what's left of your meal as a sacrifice.” She stood, grabbing her plate as she did and started walking with him.

“What do you mean ‘as a sacrifice’?” She asked, her brows furrowed.

“Well back in the Greek ages people would sacrifice animals to get the god’s attention and pray. Obviously, that’s a bit messy so we usually just scrape whatever's left on our plates into the fire. The gods like the smell and it can help if you’re hoping to get claimed,” He said with a shrug.

“So it’s like praying?”

He grinned nudging her shoulder gently, “Exactly, see? You’re getting it,” 

She nodded, trying to wrap her head around how it worked as she stepped up into the fire.

Campers around her were muttering things under their breath and scrapping leftovers into the fire.

She shook her head to herself trying to ignore how ridiculous she felt talking to herself at the fire.

_ You aren’t talking to yourself _ she scolded mentally  _ it’s just like praying at the church _ .

The used her fork to push the mostly untouched meal into the fire and spoke.

“Dad or mom- whichever you are I guess… just- notice me? Claim me? I just want to know…” She shook her head and moving away from the fire and clearing up a space for another camper. She set the plate down on a stone slab that the other demigods were placing it on when she heard someone calling her name.

She looked in the direction of the sound and saw Chase waving at her, Gert on his right and Molly on her’s. She smiles at him and heads over, sitting in the spot he makes for her on his left.

“Karolina! How’re you holding up?”

She shrugged, “Tired,” She paused for a moment, considering her words before deciding to just be honest, “Confused and a little scared, honestly.”

He nodded in understanding. He put his arm around her and patted her shoulder.

Gert slapped his shoulder from his other side and he recoiled.  
  
“Ow!” He yelped, “The hell was that for?”

“Don’t touch people without their permission Chase! You barely know her,” Gert turned to Karolina who gave her a grateful look, “Forgive him, he means well.” 

Karolina laughed and nodded, “I know, he’s been nothing but kind,”

“Sorry,” Chase said sheepishly, “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,”

She just shook her head, “Don’t worry about it.” He nodded but his attention was drawn away as a girl on the other side of the fire started up a song.

He nudges Karolina with his elbow and pointed, “Watch this, it’s my favourite part of the night.”

Slowly people joined into the campfire song and the flame slowly rose. 

As the songs went by and more and more campers joined in it kept rising, nearly 20 feet high and took on an almost golden colours. Karolina couldn’t help but feel slightly out of place- slightly down. 

She didn’t know these songs, she didn’t know where she belonged. 

She stared intently into the fire and the noise around her faded to nothing.

Maybe if she stared deep enough into the fire it’d reveal all it’s secrets to her. It’d answer all her questions.

It was only then that she realized she’d stopped tuning the noise of the campers around her out because the noise itself had disappeared.

The fire dropped a dozen feet, it’s colour changing from a gold to a curious purple.

Karolina looked around to see what’d happened only to see everyone staring at her. 

She opened her mouth, unsure as to what she’d done.   
  
Oh god had her angsty thoughts ruined the fire for everyone?

“Karolina…” Chase’s words were a mixture of fear and awe.

“What?” She asked, alarm seeping into her voice as she looked around.

That’s when she realized it.

The Glow.

She looked down at her hands and noticed her body had taken on a shimmering appearance, different colours mapping across her skin as arcs of electricity zipped and zapped all over her.

“Karolina,” She looked back to Chase frantically who pointed slowly above her head.

She looked up and saw a slightly holographic lightning bolt shimmering above her head.

The silence around was broken as she heard a whisper around her.

Then the voices came in like a flood. She could only hear fragments of each conversation.

“-Zeus-”

“-did she even get here?”

“-wonder how Nico’ll feel about this-”

She felt her breathing pick up as the voices began to overwhelm her. It was too much. Too fast. Too new.

The sound of clopping on the marble of the amphitheatre was deafening despite the hubbub of the crowd and the whispers quickly fell to nothing as Chiron moved in front of her.

“It would seem you are no quarter-god,” He said, quiet enough that only really he and Karolina could hear. He raised his voice as he spoke his next sentence.

“Zeus the Thunderer, King of the Gods, Lord of the Sky, Cloud Gatherer, Hail Karolina Dean, Daughter of Zeus.” He bent his front leg in a sort of bow and the campers all around her fell to their knees in a moment of respect.

Karolina looked around, arcs of lightning still travelling over her skin even as the glow began to fade slowly. 

After a moment Chiron stood and the campers took that as a sign to get to their feet.

“Please go back to enjoying yourselves!” He said, his voice loud as he nodded for Karolina to follow him. He didn’t wait to see if she was following so she stood and Chase touched her wrist before she could leave.

“Congrats,” He said, a genuine smile on his lips, “And good luck.”

She nodded, steeling herself and walking after Chiron.

They move in silence for much of the walk but as they get to the horseshoe of cabins he speaks up.

“Zeus’ cabin has never been inhabited,” Chiron remarked casually as they walked. Karolina looked at the large marble structure as they walked towards it.

It was looming and cold compared to the other cabins around it. A stark opposite to the wood buildings all around them. 

“Why?” She wondered, letting her eyes trace the intricate architecture of the building.

“Poseidon, Hades and Zeus agreed about a hundred years ago not to have any more children with mortals. Your smell is too strong and you are too strongly hunted by monsters due to it. This makes it all the more… curious that you managed to make it to 17 without being attacked.” He sounded troubled, a fact that set Karolina on edge. 

They walked up the stone stairs of the building and between the pillars through the door.

It was cold inside and empty. There was nothing except an empty cot in one of the corners and a 10-foot tall statue of Zeus on the opposing wall.

“Is that what he looks like?” She questioned, pointing at the statue.

Chiron hummed, “Somewhat, though he doesn’t look nearly that dead.”

Karolina understood what he meant. There was a quality to its eyes that made it look utterly lifeless.

She supposed that’s the price you pay when you’re made of stone. 

“This night has become very troubling for me,” Chiron admitted, “Tomorrow I will need you to speak to the Oracle. Some part of me is worried you’re linked to a very old and troublesome prophecy I’ve heard parts of.”   
  
Karolina turned to him, alarm in her eyes and in her racing heart.

He sighed scrubbing his hand over his face, “Apologies, I should’ve told you tomorrow. It can wait. For now, sleep. Tomorrow will be a busy day. Goodnight Karolina.”

He nodded at her a final time before leaving, his hooves thundering on the marble in the echoing room. 

She made her way over to the cot in the corner with it’s sad looking sleeping bag and climbed inside.

The cold of the building was relentless but her need to sleep won in the end. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i promise shit will get done 1000x faster if yall leave me reviews. shits gonna kick off next chapter but i need motivation to get it done.


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